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Sadio Mane
Sadio Mané (born 10 April 1992) is a Senegalese international footballer who plays as a forward for Liverpool. Liverpool career Since the departure of Luis Suarez and the injuries to Daniel Sturridge, Liverpool had failed to score the number of goals that was expected of them, with their top scorer in each of those seasons having just thirteen goals. This led Jurgen Klopp to look for more attacking options in the summer of 2016. Originally, it looked as if Mario Götze was to be the club's main attacking signing for the summer, but when a deal had appeared to have been on the cards, the German made clear his desire to instead remain at Bayern Munich. Then, rumours started to develop linking Southampton's Sadio Mané to the club, and it was reported that a bid of around £30,000,000 had been made for the Senegalese attacker. On 27 June 2016, Mané was photographed coming out of a hospital in Liverpool, having had his medical. On 28 June 2016, it was confirmed that Mané had signed for the club for a reported fee of £34,000,000, potentially rising to £36,000,000, although Merseyside correspondents put the deal at £30,000,000. As a result, Mané joined the club as one of their three most expensive signings ever. Mané became the fifth player to move from Southampton to Liverpool in just two years, following Rickie Lambert, Adam Lallana, Dejan Lovren, and Nathaniel Clyne to Anfield. On the same day, it was confirmed that Mané was to wear the number 19 shirt for the 2016-17 season. On 6 August 2016, Mane started in a friendly against Barcelona and scored his first Liverpool goal with a great finish. The Reds won 4-0. He made his competitive debut on 14 August, scoring an exquisite individual goal in a 4-3 win at Arsenal. Mane picked the ball up on the right wing and burst down it, beating two Arsenal players before cutting inside and curling it into the top left corner. Mane missed the next game against Burnley due to a shoulder injury, and his influence was certainly missed as the Reds fell to a 2-0 defeat at Turf Moor. On 23 August 2016 however he did return in a League Cup clash against Burton Albion, and picked up two assists, one for Divock Origi and the other for Daniel Sturridge. Despite not being at the club long, Mane quickly became a very important player in Jurgen Klopp's side, and there was a lot of panic from supporters once Mane was rumoured to have picked up an injury in the international break. Fortunately, there was no problem, and Mane started in the 4-1 win over Leicester. The Senegalese winger scored Liverpool's second of the game, dinking the ball over Kasper Schmiechel after Daniel Sturridge wonderfully backheeled it into his path. Mane also assisted Roberto Firmino for the Reds fourth goal, rounding the keeper and unselfishly squaring it for the Brazilian to convert. Mane scored again two weeks later, with a great strike from the edge of the box in a 5-1 win over Hull City. On 22 October 2016, Mane scored the Reds' opening goal in a 2-1 win over West Brom, with a quality first time finish after a sublime cross from Roberto Firmino. Mane also assisted Philippe Coutinho's goal, which proved to be the difference between the two sides. Two weeks later, Mane scored a brace as the Reds beat Watford 6-1 at Anfield. The first was a fine curling header from a Coutinho cross, while the second a close range finish from Roberto Firmino's square ball. On 4 December 2016, Mane picked up a goal and an assist in a 4-3 defeat to Bournemouth, with three of their goals coming after the winger was substituted, highlighting his importance to the side. On 19 December 2016, Mané scored a 94th minute winner in the 227th Merseyside Derby, finishing from close range after Daniel Sturridge's effort struck the post. Two weeks later, Mane scored what seemed to be yet another winner, but Liverpool conceded late on in a 2-2 draw with Sunderland, in the winger's final appearance before leaving for the African Cup of Nations. Mane returned on 31 January 2017, coming on as a late substitute in a 1-1 draw at home to Chelsea. On 11 February, Mane was named man-of-the-match after scoring both goals in a 2-0 win over Tottenham. The first was a smart finish after a splendid throughball from Georginio Wijnaldum, while the second was a controlled half volley after Roberto Firmino's effort was rebounded. Three weeks later, Mané put in another top performance, grabbing a goal and an assist in a 3-1 win over Arsenal. On 1 April 2017, Mane scored his thirteenth goal of the season, in a 3-1 win over Everton. He played a quick one-two with Roberto Firmino before running into the left side of the box and slotting the ball into the far corner. Unfortunately, the winger picked up an injury in the second half, which forced him off and was said to not look good. Jurgen Klopp later confirmed that the injury was set to keep him out for the rest of the season. In recognition of his excellent performances and vital contributions to Liverpool's campaign, Mane was named in the PFA Team of the Year, but was not however shortlisted for Player of the Year. For some consolation however, Mané was named Liverpool's Player of the Year by both the players and fans. With the signing of Mohamed Salah in the summer of 2017, Mane moved over to the left side of the pitch, where he had played previously at Red Bull Salzburg. This pair alongside Roberto Firmino were prolific in pre-season, and were he Reds' preferred front three ahead of the 2017-18 season. On 12 August 2017, Mane scored Liverpool's first goal of the season, netting the Reds' first equaliser in a 3-3 draw away to Watford. A week later, Mané scored the winner in a tight 1-0 win over Crystal Palace at Anfield. On 27 August 2017, Mané became just the third Liverpool player, after Robbie Fowler and Daniel Sturridge, to score in each of the opening three league games of the season, after firing in Liverpool's second in a 4-0 win over Arsenal. After a month out through injury, Mane made a surprise return in a 4-1 win over West Ham, assisting both of Mohamed Salah's goals. On 21 November 2017, Mané scored his first goal since August, netting Liverpool’s second with a beautiful diving header in an eventual 3-3 draw with Sevilla. A week later, Mané opened the scoring in a 3-0 win at Stoke, before assisting Mohamed Salah for the second. On 6 December 2017, Mané scored twice in an eventual 7-0 win over Spartak Moscow. The first was by his own admission “one of the best I have scored” as he volleyed a James Milner cross into the top corner, with too much power for the keeper to even react. The second was also a good finish, with Daniel Sturridge’s square ball being slightly behind him. On 1 January 2018, Mané opened the scoring in a 2-1 win at Burnley, with a smashing left-footed effort from the edge of the box. This came after some criticism in past weeks over poor performances against Everton and Arsenal. He continued his form on 14 January, firing in Liverpool’s third in a 4-3 win over Manchester City with a powerful strike. On 14 February 2018, Mané scored his first hattrick in a Liverpool shirt, in a 5-0 win away to Porto in the Champions League. The first was a powerful strike that slipped through due to goalkeeping error, while the second was an easy finish after a Roberto Firmino shot rebounded. The third however, was a powerful strike from around 25 yards late on to round off the win. Honours Individual *Standard Chartered Player of the Month: 2 (August 2016, February 2017) *PFA Team of the Year: 1 (2016-17) *Liverpool Player of the Season: 1 (2016-17) *Liverpool Players' Player of the Season: 1 (2016-17) Stats Category:Current Players Category:Forwards